Thursday, November 27, 2008

Leafs to meet with Sundin in Los Angeles

According to the Toronto Sun, the Leafs would like to schedule a face-to-face meeting on Sunday or Monday to discuss the possibility of Sundin returning to the Leafs.

With the expected hiring of Brian Burke as president and GM any day now, the Sun suggests Burke could get involved in the negotiations.

Sundin has been working out at a facility in Los Angeles and started skating this week. He is expected to meet with his agent, J.P. Barry, next week and narrow down his list of teams from 10 to three or four.

"We've heard his agent say he would like to play by the middle of December, but we keep hearing that Mats hasn't decided anything," Leafs GM Cliff Fletcher said.

In addition to the Leafs, the Ottawa Senators, Vancouver Canucks, Philadelphia Flyers, New York Rangers, Montreal Canadiens, Tampa Bay Lightning, Anaheim Ducks, Chicago Blackhawks and New York Islanders have all expressed an interest in Sundin.

The Flyers, the Rangers, the Canadiens, the Ducks and the Blackhawks don't have the cap space to sign Sundin unless they trade or demote one or several players.

The Leafs are going nowhere and I don't see Sundin signing with them, expecially since he said he'd like to play for a contender. The Vancouver Canucks, however, have been playing very well lately and have plenty of cap space to sign Sundin. Their 2-year, $20M offer is till on the table. If I had to bet on a team right now, it would be the Canucks who could really use Sundin to improve their young offense.